Jon Bernthal hooded as The Punisher in The Punisher: One Last Kill.
Daredevil may be the glue holding the televised MCU together, but if anyone is being honest, the Punisher is the real scene stealer. The vigilante Frank Castle has had quite a few feature film adaptations, though Jon Bernthal has become the definitive example of the character.
He debuted as Frank Castle in Season 2 of the Netflix Daredevil series and, since then, has gone on to be a fan-favorite in his own right. The two-season Punisher series for Netflix was all killer, no filler – a shining achievement that few other MCU shows can boast. The cancellation of Bernthal’s Punisher, along with the rest of the Netflix series, was a tragedy, but now is the time to return to Marvel’s most violent vigilante.
In the 44-minute television special, Frank truly returned to form in a non-stop brawl. The Punisher: One Last Kill had just about everything – except any hint about what comes next in the MCU.
‘The Punisher: One Last Kill’ Does Not Connect to ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ The Marvel Cinematic Universe is reaching uncharted territory as the brand closes in on its 20th anniversary at the movies. Many ideas have become tired, but the appreciation for Spider-Man never dies. Tom Holland’s version of the character is heading into his fourth film, Brand New Day, and somehow, it feels fresher than ever before.
Peter Parker has finally reached adulthood, as difficult as that can be, and that includes keeping up with other New York vigilantes. COLLIDER Collider · Quiz Collider Exclusive · Marvel Personality Quiz Which MCU Hero Are You? Spider-Man · Daredevil · Iron Man · Punisher · Thor · Cap Six heroes. One destiny.
Answer 10 questions to discover which Marvel Cinematic Universe hero shares your personality, values, and fighting spirit. Will you swing, fly, or thunder your way to glory? 🕷️Spider-Man 😈Daredevil 🤖Iron Man 💀Punisher ⚡Thor 🛡️Cap FIND YOUR HERO → QUESTION 1 / 10MOTIVATION 01 What drives you to do what's right? Choose the answer that feels most like you.
AWith great power comes great responsibility — I protect those who can't protect themselves. BMy faith and my conscience — I believe justice must be served, even in the dark. CLegacy and ego, honestly — but I've learned that others depend on me now. DThe system failed.
Someone has to make sure the guilty actually pay. EDuty to the innocent and honour to my name — I was born to protect realms. FThe values I was raised with — freedom, decency, and never backing down from a bully.
NEXT QUESTION → QUESTION 2 / 10YOUR CITY 02 It's 2 AM. Where are you? Your answer says more about you than you'd think. ASwinging between skyscrapers, keeping an eye on the neighbourhood.
BRunning rooftops in Hell's Kitchen, listening for trouble. CIn my lab, upgrading my suit with a cold cup of coffee nearby. DStaking out a target I've been tracking for three weeks. ESomewhere between the stars, or at a feast that got out of hand.
FOn a morning run — I was up at 4, actually. Couldn't sleep.
NEXT QUESTION → QUESTION 3 / 10CONFLICT STYLE 03 How do you handle a villain who keeps escaping justice? Every hero has a method. What's yours? AWeb them up and leave them for the police — again.
BBuild an airtight case and dismantle their entire operation from the inside. CDeploy a containment system I designed specifically for them. Tech wins. DMake sure they don't escape a third time.
Permanently. EChallenge them to single combat. Honour demands a decisive end. FRally allies, adapt the plan, and bring them in — by the book, even if it's hard.
NEXT QUESTION → QUESTION 4 / 10SECRET IDENTITY 04 How do you feel about keeping a secret identity? The mask — or the lack of one — says everything. AEssential — my loved ones would be in danger if anyone found out who I am. BCritical — the mask protects my mission as much as my face.
COverrated — I announced myself to the world and I'd do it again. DI'm a ghost. The less people know about me, the better. EMy name is known across the Nine Realms.
There's no hiding it. FI don't hide — but I understand why some need to. Transparency builds trust.
NEXT QUESTION → QUESTION 5 / 10LOSS & GRIEF 05 You've lost someone important because of your heroism. How do you carry that? Every hero pays a price. The question is how they pay it.
AWith guilt that never fully goes away — it pushes me to do better, every single day. BI channel it into purpose — their memory is the reason I keep fighting. CI buried myself in work for years. I'm only recently learning to face it.
DIt transformed me completely. I'm not the same person I was before. EWith warrior's grief — I honour them by fighting with everything I have. FI keep moving forward.
Stopping means letting the loss win. NEXT QUESTION → QUESTION 6 / 10TEAM DYNAMICS 06 What's your role when working with a team? Who you are under pressure is who you actually are. AThe enthusiastic wildcard who somehow makes it work — and keeps the mood up.
BThe strategist who works best alone but shows up when it matters most. CThe one who funds it, equips it, and occasionally takes over the whole operation. DI don't do teams. I'm more effective operating solo, on my terms.
EThe heavy hitter — I crash in, draw fire, and turn the tide of battle. FThe leader — I earn trust, build the plan, and make sure no one gets left behind.
NEXT QUESTION → QUESTION 7 / 10MORAL CODE 07 Where do you draw the line between justice and revenge? The answer defines what kind of hero you really are. AClearly — I don't kill, and I wrestle with that line constantly. BI try to hold the line, but I've come terrifyingly close to crossing it.
CPractically — I do what's necessary to protect people, including hard calls. DI crossed that line long ago. What I do is justice — the system just won't admit it. EIn battle, victory is justice.
Mercy is earned — not automatic. FFirmly. The moment we abandon our principles, we become what we fight against.
NEXT QUESTION → QUESTION 8 / 10EVERYDAY LIFE 08 When you're not saving the world, what does life look like? The person behind the mask is always the more interesting story. ATrying to juggle school, a part-time job, and not failing my friends. BWorking as a lawyer by day, fighting for justice in court and on the streets.
CRunning a global company, attending galas, and pretending I'm sleeping enough. DQuiet. Isolated. Surviving with a clear mission and no distractions.
ENavigating a bizarre and fascinating mortal world — coffee is extraordinary. FAdapting to a world decades ahead of everything I knew. Quietly, stubbornly.
NEXT QUESTION → QUESTION 9 / 10FEAR 09 What keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you're honest about what you're actually afraid of. AThe people I couldn't save — and the ones I might not reach in time tomorrow. BWhether the monster I fight every night is starting to live inside me too.
CThe threats I can see coming and whether my tech is actually good enough. DNothing. Silence is the only peace I get. I've made my choices.
EWhether I'm truly worthy — of the hammer, of the throne, of the people I protect. FA world where no one stands up anymore. Where good people do nothing.
NEXT QUESTION → QUESTION 10 / 10FINAL STAND 10 The battle is lost. You're outnumbered, outgunned, and exhausted. What do you do? This is your tiebreaker — choose carefully.
ACrack a joke to buy a second, then find the one web shot that changes everything. BBlock out everything except the sound of the next threat — and keep going. CActivate the emergency protocol I built for exactly this scenario. Always have a plan.
DI don't accept that it's lost. I keep fighting until I physically cannot anymore. ECall the lightning. All of it.
The storm answers to me. FPick up the shield. Stand up. Because as long as I can stand, it's not over.
REVEAL MY HERO → Your Hero Has Been Identified Your MCU Hero Is… Based on your answers, the Marvel hero who matches your spirit, values, and instincts has been revealed. Queens, New York 🕷️ Spider-Man You carry the weight of the world on shoulders that are younger than they should have to be — funny, loyal, and endlessly self-sacrificing.
Hell's Kitchen, New York 😈 Daredevil You fight in the shadows between law and chaos, guided by a fierce moral compass that refuses to let the guilty walk free. Stark Industries, Malibu 🤖 Iron Man Brilliant, driven, and occasionally insufferable — but always the person who solves the unsolvable problem. New York City 💀 The Punisher You've been through fire that would break most people — and it did change you, completely.
What's left is unyielding, relentless, and operating by a code forged in grief. Asgard · Protector of the Nine Realms ⚡ Thor Powerful, proud, and on a lifelong journey to become worthy of the legend you carry. Brooklyn, New York · The Avengers 🛡️ Captain America You believe in something bigger than yourself — and you fight for it even when the world has moved on and nobody else will.
↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ The trailer for Brand New Day even features Frank Castle doing street-level crime fighting, though Peter doesn't necessarily allow him to kill anyone. This team-up has been a long time coming, but for those watching One Last Kill in hopes of getting any cameos, they are sadly going to be disappointed.
Frank Castle’s hell-on-earth neighborhood of Little Sicily has no room for Spider-Man, and viewers are further from seeing how the Punisher connects to the broader MCU. One Last Kill is so far removed from the MCU that it seems impossible that quippy, optimistic Peter Parker could ever fit into that world. Frank was also absent from Daredevil: Born Again Season 2, when he had a substantial role in the first season.
Getting the Punisher to fit into Spider-Man: Brand New Day may take some mental gymnastics, or more likely, it will just go unexplained. The new Punisher television event bridges the gap from civilian Frank to fully accepting the Punisher mantle, but he still seems a long way from fitting into the New York that Brand New Day is setting up. The new Spider-Man film may not feature Frank all that extensively, considering this blind spot.
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The fun of Frank Castle is that he doesn’t adhere to the moral standards that most of the MCU heroes hold themselves to. Frank doesn’t consider himself a hero, so interacting with the purest hero of them all lends to some humor, even if it doesn’t totally make sense. His appearance in Spider-Man will likely be watered down.
The trailer showed the creative ways Marvel can include the Punisher without making the feature rated R. Spider-Man: Brand New Day is coming in fast with a premiere date of July 31, so there is really no indication that Frank’s place in the MCU will be made clearer before then. Fans will just have to wait until Peter Parker’s return to see the next phase of Frank Castle.
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